novelraw Chapter 156: Catching Fish, Mountain Goats
Chapter 156: Catching Fish, Mountain Goats
The site was over ten kilometers away, but that didn’t dampen anyone’s spirits.
Evelyn Ford took out twenty fertilized chicken eggs to incubate. After a moment’s thought, she also took out ten fertilized duck eggs.
When she went out to haul back the rock salt this time, she could conveniently come up with an origin story for these duck eggs.
Ronan Kendrick built a pen for her downstairs to continue raising chickens, ducks, and geese. After everything that had happened, petty theft had vanished from the safe zone. Besides, this was a pen built by Ronan, so no one would dare touch it.
The next morning, everyone set out to haul back the rock salt. Those with carts used carts; those without used shoulder poles, wooden buckets, basins, bedsheets... anything they could to bring the rock salt back.
After walking for two hours, they finally reached the mountain Zion Lowell had mentioned. Standing at the foot of the mountain, Evelyn Ford could see a large expanse of white rocks halfway up the slope.
After the torrential rains, a massive landslide had occurred on the mountain, and the salt rocks had tumbled down to the midway point with the mudflow. If all this rock salt were refined, it would probably yield several hundred pounds of fine salt.
Evelyn Ford and Ronan Kendrick filled a cart and started heading back. On the way, she used the excuse of needing to use the restroom to bring back the ten duck eggs.
"Evelyn, your luck is just too good."
Serena Lynch looked on with envy. Evelyn Ford, feeling a bit guilty, touched her nose.
"They’re probably from wild chickens in the mountains. If they hatch, I can trade you one or two to raise."
Hearing this, Serena Lynch immediately nodded. "Oh, yes! You’re a master at raising animals. You’ll definitely be able to hatch them."
"I want two as well! My sister has been thinking about raising some animals lately. I’ll trade you salt for them, or water."
Miles Vaughn overheard that he could trade for wild chicks and immediately came over. When he said he wanted to trade for them for Wyatt Vaughn to raise, Evelyn Ford agreed.
"Alright."
"Dr. Ford, I’d like to reserve one too. I’ll give you salt."
"Dr. Ford, I’d like to raise one too."
Everyone nearby crowded around. Evelyn Ford looked at the ten poor duck eggs. They hadn’t even hatched yet, and every single one was already spoken for.
Back at the safe zone, Zion Lowell organized everyone to refine the rock salt. Refining it required a large amount of water and boiling it over a strong fire to dissolve the salt. The people in the safe zone were very busy these days. Fortunately, the water in the reservoir refilled overnight, so getting enough water wasn’t a problem.
The cartload that Evelyn Ford and Ronan Kendrick brought back yielded a pound and a half of refined salt.
A week later, the duck eggs hatched. When the people who had reserved "chicks" came over and saw they were wild ducklings, they wished they could trade for two each.
At the price of one bowl of salt per duckling, Evelyn Ford traded away six of them. She gave one to Serena Lynch and one to Wendy, keeping the remaining two for herself.
Others also built chicken coops next to her pen. In just one short month after the torrential rains, new life in the safe zone was back on track.
As the temperature gradually rose, Evelyn Ford sowed about ten pounds of grass seed around the safe zone. She was worried that a heatwave might be coming and felt the only way to prevent the soil from eroding again was to plant more vegetation.
Fortunately, she had stockpiled a lot of seeds. Grass seed was very cheap, only four yuan per pound at wholesale prices.
Around the perimeter of the safe zone, Evelyn Ford also scattered many tree seeds: fir, cedar, parasol trees...
The ones she had sown earlier were already ten centimeters tall. Officer Graham even happily told Evelyn Ford that he had discovered bamboo shoots.
Evelyn Ford simply smiled, letting her good deeds go unsung.
The grass seeds sprouted very quickly. Evelyn Ford had sown Four Seasons Green, a type of long-leafed grass that wouldn’t wither year-round. It could grow very tall and act as a barrier against sandstorms.
While the others were still busy hauling rock salt and carrying water to refine it, Evelyn Ford was occupied with growing vegetables and raising her chickens and ducks. Soon, she once again became the safe zone’s number one animal farmer.
Anyone could come to her to trade for chicken and duck eggs, or for chicks.
After the dense fog dissipated, people could also venture further out to gather firewood.
Quincy even came over to ask Ronan Kendrick to go fishing at Silver River. Although it was a bit far, with the fog gone, a round trip of a few days would be manageable.
Others came to sign up with Quincy. The weather was getting warmer, and if they caught fish, they could immediately make smoked fish and dried fish, which could be preserved for a long time.
"The water in Silver River might be contaminated by acid rain," Serena Lynch said, disagreeing with Chase Underwood going fishing. "Wouldn’t it be better to spend that time making two trips for rock salt?"
"The water in Silver River is deep! Besides, it’s not stagnant; the water flows. Even if it was hit with ten days of acid rain, it would have been diluted and washed away long ago. Silver River is full of fish. Those people who left before, they headed in the direction of Silver River." When Quincy said this, the others became even more tempted.
Ronan Kendrick, however, remained impassive, showing no intention of going.
"Ronan, come with us. You don’t even have to fish. Just be responsible for our safety. After all, if the people who left before have settled at Silver River, we’re bound to run into trouble trying to fish there. When we get back, we’ll each give you two fish."
Ronan Kendrick still shook his head. "If Evelyn isn’t going, I’m not going either."
Quincy looked at Evelyn Ford, but she immediately waved her hand dismissively.
"I’m not going. My chicks can’t be without me."
"Actually, I think Quincy’s idea is great. The three of us will join you. Bring sacks, bring carts—let’s go for a week. We’re sure to come back with a full load," Zion Lowell said, full of enthusiasm.
"That’s great! Anyone who’s going, let’s gather tomorrow morning. Bring your gear, and we’ll head out."
Officer Graham was definitely going too. He wanted to leave Wendy behind, but she refused to stay no matter what, insisting on going with them to catch fish.
In the end, Serena Lynch also agreed to let Chase Underwood go fishing. Except for Ronan Kendrick, all the young men in the safe zone left.
Evelyn Ford kept busy in her vegetable garden every day, occasionally checking on the growth of the grass seeds she had sown.
One day, Evelyn Ford went to the mountains to fetch water, scattering grass and tree seeds along the way. Unexpectedly, just as she reached the pool, she saw two black mountain goats drinking water.
Evelyn Ford couldn’t believe her luck. She immediately took out a hemp rope and led them back.
"Goats? Evelyn, you actually brought back two goats?"
Evelyn Ford smiled, pressing her lips together. "Just good luck. I caught them by the pool when I went to get water today. If you all have time, you can go try your luck too. It’s warm now, there’s water in the mountains, and the animals are coming out."
Hearing this, who could sit still? Everyone rushed off to try their luck.
And what do you know, a few hours later, some people actually came back with wild chickens and rabbits.
The person who caught a rabbit was even luckier—it was a pregnant doe. That very night, she gave birth to a litter of kits. Even Evelyn Ford was a bit envious and immediately traded for one.
Mina and Lola were now completely free-roaming. Everyone in the safe zone knew Evelyn Ford had two pets, and since Mina could find rock salt, they all regarded her as a lucky charm. No one would dare harm them.
Evelyn Ford then handed over the task of raising the rabbit to Ronan Kendrick. He had just finished building the goat pen when he was assigned the new job of raising rabbits.
The goats were a male and a female. Evelyn Ford planned to raise them; maybe in the future, she could even grow a herd.